During a chaotic qualifying session with a red flag and an almost rare multi-car accident, BMW confirmed its impressive speed with the overall pole position for the 63rd edition.rd Rolex 24 at Daytona.
RLL BMW Team driver Dries Vanthoor clocked a lap of 1 minute, 33.895 seconds on the 12-turn, 3.56-mile road course to qualify first in the No. 24 BMW M Hybrid V8. Nick Yelloly qualified second (1:34.186) in the No. 93 Meyer Shank Racing ARX-06 Acura. Felipe Nasr, driving the No. 7 Penske Motorsport Porsche 963, the defending winner, finished third (1:34.280).
This is the first pole position for BMW in the Grand Touring Prototype hybrid category. The premier division began in 2023 and ushered in the LMDh era of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
“Very happy, very nice,” Vanthoor told NBC Sports’ Kevin Lee. “Again, I mean, that doesn’t mean much. The race is still long, but yes, it’s great to start on pole. It’s the first pole of our program, so I’m very happy to have achieved it, but the race is still long so a lot can still happen, but this is the best starting position we can get, so we can’t get much more than that. »
BMW was the last manufacturer to announce its intention to enter the GTP category and has struggled over the past two seasons to match the results of Acura, Porsche and Cadillac. The RLL BMW team had scored a victory in each of the last two seasons as BMW finished last among the manufacturers in the 2023-24 championship standings.
But since the Roar Before the Rolex 24 test last weekend at Daytona International Speedway, BMW has always topped the speed charts while Vanthoor set the fastest lap (1:35.424) in seven sessions from last Friday to Sunday.
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, co-owner of Bobby Rahal, said the team’s pace has fostered a “very positive, very calm” atmosphere internally.
Key information about the 2025 Rolex 24 at Daytona, taking place January 25-26 at Daytona International Speedway.
“Really, since last weekend’s Roar, it’s been a smooth week so far,” team owner Bobby Rahal told Lee before qualifying began. “The cars were fast. Of course, that makes me even more nervous when everything is going so well. You wait for the other shoe to drop.
It appeared that this might have been due to the start of qualifying, as a mechanical issue on the RLL team’s other car, the No. 25 BMW M Hybrid V8, brought out a 5-minute red flag (and wiped out any hope that BMW driver Sheldon van der Linde sets a lap time).
With only Mirko Bortolotti in the No. 63 Lamborghini SC63 completing a lap before the stop, the GTP session became a scam when the green flag was waved with 6 minutes to go.
Rolex 24 Roar recap: Results and what we learned at Daytona as BMW posted impressive speed
The two BMW entries were fast throughout the Roar ahead of the Rolex 24 tests at Daytona.
Vanthoor, who co-drives with Philipp Eng, Raffaele Marciello and Kevin Magnussen, took pole one minute after the checkered flag (having started his final lap while still under green).
“It was quite tricky, especially getting the tire pressure up and braking to start the lap,” he said. “It hasn’t always been our strength, but it seems like we’ve made good progress. And then it was just about getting a clean round.
That was not the case for Tom Blomqvist, who had the fastest time entering the final minute and looked set to improve on his final lap in the No. 60 Acura. But the Meyer Shank Racing driver nearly collided with Bortolotti while turning on the backstretch. The action continued as Blomqvist and Bortolotti nearly touched each other several times before the Le Mans Chicane.
“I had a pretty big gap and obviously I had a pretty good lap and I had a lot better driving,” Blomqvist told NBC Sports’ Matt Yocum. “When I go to pass it on, he tries to squeeze me. Yeah, I get it, he’s trying to protect his turn, but they’re 2 seconds off the pace. So yes, it was unfortunate for both of us.
“I was in a bad position there with the track position. I had to make a split decision, the previous round, whether to back off and hope the last one went well or not. I got burned so many times by not doing a lap and then hoping to do the last one and there was a red or whatever. So I made the decision in this case, which was probably not the right one. And then obviously I was hoping to be able to get through it but he tried to rush me, and that’s the qualification. This (stuff) shouldn’t happen. It was just a bad position because of my position. We were a much faster car and unfortunately for him, he tries to do his job and then he tries to block me. I mean, it would have been nice if he let me go.
Blomqvist, who qualified sixth behind the No. 31 Cadillac of Jack Aitken (1:34.350) and the No. 85 Porsche of Gianmaria Burni (1:34.374), looked set to repeat his 2023 qualifying performance when he completed a massive final lap. to win the Rolex 24 pole (and also won the race in MSR’s final start at Daytona).
“So it’s a shame that qualifying went to us, because I think we had a good car,” he said. “I think pole position was definitely up for grabs today. We were a little behind the others on the tires, so I had to really warm them up, so it wasn’t ideal. It’s obviously disappointing because I think the car definitely had a chance to fight for pole, but it’s a long race anyway, so it’s just an ego thing at the moment. It’s not the end of the world, so we have to persevere and we have a good race car.
QUALIFICATION: Click here for results I By class I Fastest lap by driver I Best times in the sector I Fastest Lap Sequence
Rahal and Vanthoor also preached patience, especially as the cold temperatures that lowered speeds on Thursday are expected to persist through the weekend.
“It will just be a new thing for everyone in the race to see how it goes in hot conditions, cold conditions and probably a lot of drama,” Vanthoor said.
Rolex 24 pole qualifications in other categories:
LMP2
Daniel Goldburg took first place in the No. 22 United Autosports ORECA LMP2 07, with a lap time of 1 minute 38.676 seconds. Ben Keating, who races in the LMP2 and GTD Pro categories, qualified second (1:39.00) in the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA.
“It was pretty much right on target, but it’s awesome,” Goldburg, who co-drives with Paul di Resta, Rasmus Lindh and James Allen, told NBC Sports’ Yocum. “I was close to pole several times last year. Put in a lot of work in the off-season, a lot of work on the Roar and the November test. The team, the boys put together an awesome car and put it all together today.
“I’m really, really excited about it. I have been coming and watching this race for almost 20 years and participating. Long race ahead. So there you have it, it’s just a small notch. And now I have a great team, a great group of co-drivers, and we’re going to work on Saturday.
Nick Boulle (1:39.203) finished third in the No. 2 car, followed by Chris Cumming (1:39.217) and Steven Thomas (1:39.389).
GTDPro
The Ford Mustang GT3s swept the front row as Mike Rockenfeller clocked a lap of 1 minute, 45.523 seconds in his No. 64 to edge Multimatic Motorsports teammate Frederic Vercisch (1:45.855) in the No. 65. The Ford factory effort has shuffled its crew. after a lackluster return to the GT category last year.
“We definitely pushed really hard all week,” Rockenfeller, who will co-drive with Sebastian Priaulx and NASCAR Cup driver Austin Cindric, told NBC Sports’ Lee. “I would say the Roar (test) has already been good. The Mustang was perfect, but we all know it’s a great place, but we really want to be (first) on Sunday, so now we’re just focusing on racing. Qualifying is good, and it’s good to be here to get the attention, but no one remembers it next week, so it’s all about the race now.
“I think the car was working great. I had a really clean lap. I think we took a different strategy than everyone else on our side and it paid off in those cold conditions. For us as a team it means a lot because we really had a difficult first year. We definitely had some highlights, but that’s normal when you come with a new car to one of the toughest championships in the world. with the best competition so you can’t expect to be. there from the start and I think in year 2 now, showing the pace in qualifying is amazing. Now we have to focus on the race.
The top five was completed by Dan Harper (1:46.005) in the No. 48 BMW M4 GT3, Alexander Sims (1:46.012) in the No. 3 Corvette Zo6 GT3.R and Andrea Caldarelli (1:46.136) in the Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 n°9.
GTD
With 4 minutes remaining, Elliott Skeer completed a lap of 1 minute, 46.634 seconds in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R, edging Philip Ellis (1:46.652) in the No. 57 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Winward Racing who won the title. GTD Championship last year.
“It’s a race with a lot of unknowns, obviously, with the new (torque) sensors and everything we have in the car,” Skeen, who co-drives with Adam Adelson, Tom Sargent and Ayhancan Güven, said. Yocum. “So to have a Porsche finally strong at Daytona is great. As a team at Wright, we put a tremendous amount of work into composing these sensors and composing the chassis. And it takes a lot to put it all together. And ultimately, it was what I needed on the tour. Have luck with a draft here or there and hit my marks otherwise.
“Of course it’s a 24-hour race. But what a great way to start the year with our Wright Motorsports for Porsche in the lead.”
Trent Hindman qualified third in the No. 45 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2, followed by Parker Thompson in the No. 12 Lexus RC F GT3 and Franck Perera in the No. 78 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2.
The 63rd Rolex24 premieres at 1:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 25 on NBC and Peacock.
